McMaster, SQI team up to use chip technology for faster disease testing

HAMILTON, ONT. | The McMaster University Department of Engineering is partnering with SQI Diagnostics, a Toronto-based life sciences company, to develop chip technology for use in multi-array disease testing.The partnership and licensing agreement aims to achieve dramatic reductions in disease testing times, from days and hours to minutes.According to SQI, the growing global market for such technology can be measured in the hundreds of millions of dollars, and there’s an even larger potential market for rapid, portable diagnostic devices that can provide results in minutes at the point of care, such as hospitals, ER units and medical offices.The company, which develops and commercializes proprietary technologies and products for advanced multiplexed diagnostics, says its existing proprietary technology enables global pharmaceutical and diagnostic testing companies to perform highly complex multiplex tests much faster, more accurately and at a lower cost than other methods.Initial work by SQI and McMaster’s Multiphysics Research Group (MuRG), which specializes in creating novel detection technologies, has led to the partnership to develop instant chip technology and detection devices that will enable a wide array of multi-result tests to be offered to healthcare professionals and patients in clinical settings worldwide.“Combining SQI’s deep expertise in multiplexing and immunoassay science with the early yet very exciting performance of the MuRG diagnostic platform developed by our world-class group here at McMaster is very promising,” says Dr. Ishwar Puri, MuRG’s director.Andrew Morris, president and CEO of SQI Diagnostics, adds, “Part of SQI’s transition from a research company to a commercial enterprise involves constantly seeking out new markets, technologies and applications in diagnostic testing. The McMaster relationship is part of that market development strategy.”The collaboration was made possible in part by a grant from the Ontario Centres of Excellence through the VIP program, which helps eligible Ontario companies develop, implement and commercialize technical innovations by supporting industry-academic collaborations.Read more about SQI Diagnostics here.Read more about McMaster Engineering at here.

McMaster, SQI team up to use chip technology for faster disease testing

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